September Song
by Ms Chanadler Bong
Summary: Hey guys! This is an AU about Castle and Beckett meeting in college a couple of years after Joanna's death. Let me know what you think! I hope you guys like it!
1. Chapter 1

She couldn't believe her mom had been gone for two years. Kate could swear she could hear her mom's voice even now, echoing as she shouted something from the couch in the living room. The past two years had been the hardest of her life. Kate's father had spent the first year without her mother drinking. After finally hitting rock bottom, he had decided to go to rehab and was now six months sober.

Kate had spent the past two years taking care of her father. She had taken some time off her pre – law degree. She had loved California, Stanford, all of it really but she couldn't stay there anymore. Her mother's murder had haunted her, she wanted justice but no matter what she did, it was never enough.

She wasn't the same, how could she be? A vital part of her had been ripped away from her. Kate's dreams of being the first female Chief Justice were still alive but she supressed them, telling herself that her father needed her. As true as that was, she was scared, scared to start again, to go back to her life without her mother.

"Hey Katie, come here a second." Jim said.

"What's up?" Kate asked, taking a seat next to Jim at the dining table.

"I've been thinking and if you still want to, I think you should go back to college." Jim said.

"You need me, here." Kate said.

"Kate, these are your dreams and I don't want to stand in their way." Jim said.

"You aren't, I want to stay." Kate said, holding her father's hand.

"I had a feeling you would say that." Jim said, picking up a few pages from next to him.

"What is this?" Kate asked.

"NYU has a great pre – law program and you can stay home with me." Jim said.

Kate just stared at the prospectus in front of her, she wanted this but she didn't know if she could do it all over again.

"I know you're scared, Katie. I am too but your mom would want us to live our lives in the best way possible. These are your dreams, Katie and she dreamed them with you. She would want you to have whatever it is you want." Jim said.

"I really miss her." Kate said, her eyes filling up with tears.

"Me too." Jim said, hugging his daughter.

Kate missed her mother more than words could express but she knew that she was with her, always.

It had been a long few months, trying to transfer from Stanford to NYU but she had managed to make it work. She woke up the morning of her first class with a kind of excitement and nervousness, she had not felt in years. Her first class was Criminology, something that had always interested her.

Kate walked into the huge lecture theatre and sat in the empty seat in the front row. Next to her was a beautiful brunette. Kate wanted to say hi but didn't. She looked at the girl from the corner of her eye.

"Hi, I'm Laine." The girl said, with a smile.

"Kate. "Kate said with a smile.

"Are you new?" Laine asked.

"Yeah, I just transferred from Stanford." Kate said.

"Stanford, wow. Why though? California too sunny for ya?" Laine asked.

"Something like that." Kate said with a smile.

"What are you studying?" Laine asked.

"Pre – Law, you?" Kate asked.

"Pre – med. Laine said.

Their professor walked in, interrupting their conversation.

Laine and Kate were inseparable for the next few days. They spent all of their free time together. Kate hadn't told Laine about her mom but she was getting there. Finally feeling like she might be ready to let someone new in.

"So, my boyfriend is throwing a party at his apartment and you have to come." Laine said, sipping on her coffee.

"Oh, I don't know." Kate said, running her finger along the lid of her coffee.

"Oh, come on. I want you to meet Espo and all of our other friends." Laine said.

"Ummm.." Kate said.

"Come on, Kate. Live a little." Laine said.

Kate thought for a moment. It had been a while since she had gone to a party and it might be a good way to get to know some more people. Laine had been good to her and Kate didn't want to push her away.

"Fine." Kate said after a moment, rolling her eyes.

Kate spent the entire evening trying to pick what to wear. She didn't want to be too overdressed or underdressed. She hadn't done this in two years, it was like she had forgotten what it was like to be with her friends and just chill. After searching her entire wardrobe, she settled on a straight black dress. She tied her hair in a bun and smiled at herself in the mirror, feeling almost silly for worrying so much. She had done this so many times, why did this have to be any different.

Just as Kate was done getting dressed, she heard a knock on the door.

"Hey." Kate said, opening the door.

"Girl, you look amazing." Laine said, looking at Kate from top to bottom.

"Thanks." Kate said, with a small smile.

"You ready to go?" Laine asked.

"Yeah." Kate said, shutting the door behind her.

"You okay?" Laine asked, once they were in the car.

"Yeah, why?" Kate asked.

"You haven't said anything for a while." Laine said.

"I'm a little nervous." Kate said, looking at her hands.

"Why?" laine asked.

"I haven't been to a party in a while." Kate said.

"Oh, it's okay. Everyone is really nice and besides, I'll be with you the entire time." Laine said with a smile.

Kate felt reassured, she was still nervous but she knew she was going to be okay as long as Laine was around.

"Hey babe." A man said, kissing Laine.

"Hey baby." Laine said, kissing him back.

"Kate, this is my boyfriend Esposito. Espo, this is Kate." Laine said, introducing the two.

"I've heard a lot of great things about you." Kate said, shaking Espo's hand.

"Likewise." Espo said.

Kate liked Espo, he seemed really nice and he was very good to Laine. For a while, the three of them kept talking, until someone tapped Espo on the shoulder.

"Hey." The man said.

"Hey Rick." Espo said, hugging the man.

"Kate this is Rick, Rick, this is Kate." Espo said, introducing the two.

"Hey, I'm Rick." Richard said, extending his hand.

"Kate." Kate said, shaking his hand, suddenly feeling a little warm in her chest.

"So, what are you studying?" Rick asked, , once Espo and Laine had stepped away to refill their drinks.

"I'm pre – law, how about you?" Kate asked.

"English. I want to be a writer." Rick said.

"Oh cool." Kate said, trying to sound a little aloof.

"So, are you new?" Rick asked.

"Yeah, I just transferred from Stanford." Kate said.

"Yeah, I thought as much. I knew if I'd met you before, I'd remember you." Rick said with a suggestive smile.

Kate didn't really know what to say. He was cute but she wasn't ready for whatever it is, he was looking for.

"Can I get you a drink?" Rick asked.

"Nah, I don't feel like drinking tonight." Kate said.

"Okay, coffee then?" Rick asked, trying to be charming.

"It's the middle of the night..." Kate said.

"Tomorrow?" Rick asked.

Before Kate could say anything, Laine pulled her away to meet one of her other friends. Rick and Kate didn't talk much for the rest of the night. When Laine and Kate were about to leave, they came to say bye to Espo and Rick.

"Bye." Kate said.

"Are you sure I can't interest you in a cup of coffee sometime?" Rick asked.

"It was nice to meet you, Rick." Kate said.

"It's too bad, it would've been great." Rick said with a smirk.

Kate couldn't help but feel a little giddy. She didn't know what was taking over her.

"You have no idea." She said, whispering in his ear.


	2. Chapter 2

Kate had been trying her level best to focus on her father, education and friends. Everything reminded her of her mother but she had learnt in the past two years that that was probably never going to go away. She found solace in the fact that she was getting better, she had started going for parties with her friends and generally letting go just a little bit.

Kate, Espo, Laine and Rick were having coffee at a café near campus. The four of them had been hanging out a lot and as annoying as Kate found Rick most of the time, she was starting to get used to having him around.

The four of them had been sitting there for hours and Rick was in the mood for his third refill.

"Do you guys want anything?" Rick asked, standing up.

"Nah, I'm good." Espo said.

Rick looked over at the two girls as he walked backwards. Both of them shook their heads as if to say no. As Rick turned around, he bumped into a girl, spilling the coffee she was holding in her hand.

"I am so sorry." Rick said, looking into the brown eyes of the girl standing in front of him. He looked at her and he knew this was something different, she was something different.

"It's completely alright." The brunette said with a polite smile.

"No, please let me at least buy you another one." Rick said.

"No, that's fine." She said.

"I insist." Rick said.

The girl didn't say anything, she smiled at Rick and followed him to the counter.

"A.." Rick looked to the girl to ask her for her order.

"A cappuccino." The girl said, after a moment.

"A cappuccino for the lady." Rick said.

"Thanks." The girl said. 

"No thanks needed. I'm Rick by the way." Rick said, extending his hand.

"Kyra." She said, taking his hand.

"You look really familiar; do you go to NYU?" Rick said.

"Yeah, I do." Kyra said with a smile.

"I knew I had seen you somewhere! What are you studying?" Rick said.

"I'm studying finance." Kyra said with a smile.

"Cool. A bunch of us from NYU are here, would you like to join us?" Rick asked.

Kyra thought for a second. Seeing her hesitation, Rick looked at her with pleadingly.

"Sure." Kyra said, giving in to his adorable puppy dog eyes.

"Guys, this Kyra. She studies Finance at NYU." Rick said.

After the initial awkwardness, it felt like Kyra fit into the group seamlessly. As much as Kate liked having someone new in the group, someone who would understand what it was like joining a group that was so well knit way before she ever met them; she couldn't stop herself from hating the attention Rick gave her. Rick and Kyra hadn't been able to keep their eyes off each other and Kate had no idea why she even cared. She told herself that she didn't, Rick was annoying and just the complete opposite of everything she was. She pushed away all of these thoughts because of course they were ridiculous, she could never have any interest in him.

A few weeks had a passed and Kyra seemed to have become a permanent fixture in the group's outings. The weird part was that Kate and Kyra got a long like a house on fire. There was no way Kate could even dislike Kyra. She was real and nice, something so different from all of girls she had seen Rick hit on in the few months she had known in him.

Laine, Kate and Rick had criminology together. Rick had taken it up after hearing how much Laine and Kate had been enjoying it. He said he had always had an interest in criminal behaviour but a part of Kate wanted to believe that he had taken it to be closer to her.

Their criminology professor had been taking about this huge course work all semester. The coursework was 50% of their final grade and he was going to assign each of them a partner.

Laine and Kate had been doing their criminology readings together, to stay on top of things. The girls usually studied in Laine's dorm room.

"Hey, I think we just got the email about our partners." Laine said staring at her phone.

"Oh god. Please tell me you're my partner." Kate said.

"No, my partner is Tori." Laine said.

"Who's my partner then?" Kate asked, really dreading having a horrible partner.

"Your partner is Rick." Laine said with a huge smile on her face.

"AHHH! Why do you look so happy about this?" Kate asked, a little annoyed.

"Because you're so clearly into him." Laine said.

"I am not, okay? That's ridiculous." Kate said, defensively.

"Whatever you need to believe." Laine said with a smug smirk on her face.

"This is horrible. He's not going to do any work and I'm going to have to do his part also. He's going to be too busy with Kyra to be of any use." Kate said, visibly annoyed.

"You sound jealous." Laine said, enjoying this way more than she should.

"Jealous? HA. Why would I be jealous?" Kate said, trying to seem nonchalant.

"You tell me." Laine said.

Kate just rolled her eyes. She was dreading having to do this whole assignment on her own. Plus, with all of the hours they would have to spend together, Rick was really going to get on her nerves..

Kate began working the second she came home. She knew she needed to get a head start on this assignment, if she was going to pass this class. Kate made herself a cup of coffee and sat down on the desk in her bedroom. As she was about to open her laptop, her phone buzzed.

"Did you hear? We're partners for the criminology assignment, this is awesome!" The message from Rick read.

Kate read the message in Rick's voice and it made her groan. She could almost hear him smiling ear to ear.

"Yeah I heard. This is assignment is huge, we need to start working asap." Kate said.

"You just can't wait to spend time with me, huh?" Rick said, trying to be cheeky.

"Not even a little bit. I would prefer being partnered with literally anyone else on the planet." Kate said.

"Wow, that's deeply hurtful." Rick said, jokingly.

"Rick, just promise me you'll do the work." Kate said.

"I promise." Rick said.

"Okay, see you tomorrow?" Kate asked.

"Tomorrow." Rick said.

Kate was surprised at how sincere he sounded. As much as she wanted to deny it, a part of her was very excited to be partnered with Rick. Even though he got on her nerves, she was always smiling a little bit more when he was around. And she needed that. She had somehow forgotten how to smile for no reason and maybe he was starting to remind her what that used to feel like.


	3. Chapter 3

Kate and Rick had been working on the assignment all week and they had made a lot of progress. Kate hated admiting it but they worked really well as a team. The two of them had been spending a lot of time alone and as a result hadn't seen any of their friends and Kyra in a few days.

"Can you relax?" Rick said, from the bed in his dorm room.

"How do you know I'm not relaxed?" Kate asked, turning around in the chair at this table.

"I can feel your furrowed eyebrows till here." Rick said.

"I'm just thinking about all the work we have to do." Kate said.

"We're doing fine, you need to stop freaking out." Rick said.

"I'm not freaking out, I'm just focused, unlike some of us." Kate said.

"Hey! I'm focused too but I'm not obsessive." Rick said, defensively.

Kate rolled her eyes at Rick, it had almost become an instinct now.

"Look, we're going to be okay. We're right on schedule and besides, we work great as a team." Rick said, moving to the foot of the bed to face Kate.

Kate wanted to say something witty, she wanted to deny how good they were together. But as she sat there, staring into his blue eyes, she suddenly fell short of words. They continued staring into each other's eyes for a few seconds, entranced by each other's gaze.

"We should get back to work." Kate said, snapping out of the moment.

Kate decided to focus on her work. She couldn't afford to be distracted by Rick anymore.

The two of them spent the next few hours in silence, except for the sound of Rick's phone going off every couple of minutes. Kate tried to keep quiet about it but between the sound of Rick's phone, him typing and his soft laughter, she was starting to go a little mad.

"Who keeps texting you?" Kate asked, annoyed.

"My girlfriend." Rick said, absentmindedly as he continued texting.

"Your girlfriend?" Kate asked, sounding a little confused.

"Yeah, Kyra." Rick said, looking up from his phone.

"Oh yeah." Kate said, softly.

"You sound surprised." Rick said, putting down his phone.

"No, I just hadn't seen her around lately, so I thought that you guys weren't together anymore." Kate said.

"We've just been so busy with the project and she's been busy with her assignments, that's probably why we all haven't gotten a chance to hang out." Rick said.

Kate wanted to let it go, there was no point continuing this conversation.

"I just..." Kate said, trying to stop herself.

Rick looked at her as if to ask her to continue.

"I just thought you weren't the type to have a girlfriend." Kate said.

"I'm not, usually. But with Kyra, it's different." Rick said.

Kate faked a smile and turned back to her computer. For the rest of the evening, something kept bothering her. Whenever the thought of Rick and Kyra came to her mind, she brushed it aside. She tried telling herself that this wasn't the reason why things didn't seem right, there was no reason for her to care about Rick and his love life. He was so different from everything she had looked for in guy, or so she had thought. Seeing how serious he seemed about Kyra, Kate was starting to think about Rick, maybe in a way she hadn't before.

After her study session with Rick, Kate decided to get some coffee with Laine.

"So, how's it going with Rick?" Laine asked, with a huge smile on her face.

"We still have a lot of the assignment left but we're working on it." Kate said.

"That's not what I meant." Laine said.

"What did you mean?" Kate asked, trying to play dumb.

"How are you and Rick doing?" Laine said, trying to be discreet.

"Fine." Kate said.

"You're making this no fun for me." Laine said.

"Haha, I don't know why you keep asking me these things, he has a girlfriend." Kate said.

"Kyra?" Laine asked.

Kate nodded, as she took a sip of her coffee.

"Would things be different, if he didn't?" Laine asked, with a raised eyebrow.

Before Kate could answer, a tall man with brown hair and blue eyes walked up to their table.

"Kate?" The man said.

"Tom? Hey." Kate said, standing up to hug the man.

"How are you doing? It's been so long." Tom said.

"I'm good. Tom, this is friend Laine." Kate said, stepping aside to reveal Laine.

"Hey." Tom and Laine said at the same time.

"So, what are you doing here?" Kate asked.

"I just moved here, what are you doing here?." Tom said.

"I moved back home." Kate said.

"Yeah, because of your mom, I was sorry to hear that." Tom said.

"Thanks." Kate said, uncomfortably.

"We should catch up sometime." Tom said.

"Yeah sure." Kate said.

"Bye." Tom said, walking away.

"Who was that?" Laine asked.

"My ex – boyfriend." Kate said.

"He's cute." Laine said.

Kate looked at Laine with a small smile.

"We don't have to talk about it, if you don't want to." Laine said, sensing Kate's discomfort.

"It's okay, I've been meaning to tell you." Kate said, not knowing where to start.

Laine didn't say anything, she just looked at Kate with as much understanding as possible.

"It had happened two years ago. I was supposed to go for dinner with my parents. My dad and I went to the restaurant and my mom was going to meet us there. We waited for two hours but she never showed, so we headed home. A detective was waiting for us there. They attributed it to gang violence. They never found the killer." Kate said, a tear streaming down her face.

"Oh honey, I'm so sorry." Laine said, moving to the chair next to Kate and holding her.

Kate let herself go; She couldn't hold back her tears. In the past years, a second hadn't gone by when she wasn't thinking about her mom. Laine held onto Kate, wanting to comfort her in a way that words didn't allow. It had been a long time since Kate had trusted someone like that, completely letting her guard down but the truth was, for the first time in a long time, someone had come along who had felt like someone Kate could count on. People had tried to be there for Kate before, be her friend but this was different. This was real and in its own way, inexplicable.


	4. Chapter 4

Kate had been more stressed than usual. She had always been at the top of her class but she had never been someone who worried about assignments.

Kate paced up and down the length of Rick's dorm.

"Relax, Kate." Rick said.

"I can't." Kate said, still pacing.

"Why not?" Rick asked, trying to follow Kate with his gaze.

"I don't know." Kate said.

"Is there something else going on?" Rick asked.

Kate stopped, looking at Rick for the first time during the course of their conversation. Before she could answer, Rick's phone buzzed. Kate expected Rick to start texting Kyra again but he didn't even look at his phone. He put it on silent and brought his attention back to Kate.

Rick looked at Kate, searching her face for an answer.

"I think I need some space." Kate said.

"What do you mean?" Rick asked, feeling a little hurt.

"I think I need to head home. I'll meet you back here in a few hours." Kate said.

"But what about the assignment?" Rick shouted after Kate but she was already gone.

Rick had tried to keep Kate calm but they really did have to complete this assignment. He picked up his computer and stared at the incomplete assignment in front of him. It was due in a few hours but he didn't want to worry Kate any more than she already was.

Kate rushed home, not really knowing what else to do. When she entered, she saw her father sitting at the dining room table. Kate tried to walk past him, she wasn't really in mood for having a conversation.

"Katie?" Jim said, from the dining room.

"Hey dad." Kate said, walking into the room.

"I thought you were working with Rick on the assignment." Jim said.

"Yeah, I was, I just needed some space." Kate said.

"Was he getting on your nerves again?" Jim asked, jokingly.

"No, he was actually really nice." Kate said, absentmindedly.

"Then what is it?" Jim asked.

"I'm just really worried about the assignment." Kate said.

"I thought you guys were almost done." Jim said.

"We are." Kate said.

"What's going on Katie?" Jim asked, sensing that there was something else going on.

"I've just been so worried about this that it clouds everything I do." Kate said, taking a seat next to Jim.

"You've never been worried about assignments, why are you so worried about this one?" Jim asked.

"It's my first one back, I really want to do well." Kate said.

Jim could sense Kate wasn't saying everything that was on her mind. "And?" He asked.

"I want to make mom proud." Kate said, chocking up a little.

"She's already proud of you, Katie." Jim said, holding his daughter's hand.

"So many times, I'd be sitting in class and hear something interesting about a case and want to talk to mom about it. For those few seconds before I would realise that she's gone, I would feel like nothing had changed." Kate said.

"Oh honey. I know the two of you dreamt of this for you but she'd be proud of you no matter what. She always used to talk about how proud she was of the woman you were becoming." Jim said.

Kate looking at Jim with a small smile as her eyes welled up with tears.

"She's with you, Katie. She would be the first one to tell you that none of this matters beyond a point. I'm so proud of how you've started your life again, it's not easy. I know how hard it can be, but we can do this together." Jim said, putting an arm around his daughter.

Kate always felt reassured after talking to her father. No one understood how she felt, especially about her mother, the way he did. A lot of the pressure she had felt mounting on her shoulders, seemed to dissipate. She decided to head back to Rick's and finish the assignment.

"Hey, sorry about earlier. I know we have a bit left but we'll be able to manage." Kate said., walking into Rick's dorm.

"No need." Rick said, with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Kate asked.

"I finished it for us." Rick said.

"But you'd already done your part." Kate said.

"I know but you were tensed and we're a team." Rick said.

"Thank you." Kate said, with a big smile.

Rick felt butterflies flying amuck in his stomach. There was something about Kate's smile that made Rick nervous and excited at the same time.

"You're welcome. It's all done, you can proof read it and hit the send button." Rick said.

Kate sat down next to Rick on the edge of his bed and began reading their assignment.

"This is really good. I think we're good to go." Kate said.

Kate looked at Rick, took a deep breath and hit send. This assignment had been all she had thought about and now it was finally over.

"Now that this is done, I need you to come with me." Rick said, picking up a bag from the side of his bed.

"Where?" Kate asked.

"Just trust me." Rick said.

Kate gave Rick a look of annoyance, one that she had been giving him since the day they had met.

"Close your eyes." Rick said.

Kate stared at Rick.

"Come on." Rick said.

Kate took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Rick lightly kept his hand over Kate's eyes to make sure she wasn't looking.

Rick led Kate out of the room as a hand covered her eyes. Kate kept trying to ask Rick where they were going but all he said was, they weren't going far. Kate could hear doors creaking. Rick made her climb more steps than she could count and just when she was about to remove his hand, he told her they had reached. Kate heard another door creak open.

"Just a small step more." Rick said. He removed the hand from over her eyes.

Kate opened her eyes to see that they were on the roof of the dorm building.

"What are we doing here?" Kate asked.

"You're stressed. This is where I come, when I'm stressed or confused." Rick said, walking towards to the railing. The entirety of the New York skyline was visible from the roof.

Despite having spent her entire life in the city, looking at it from this damp roof, made her fall in love with it all over again. There was something about seeing New York at night, something that made you appreciate it in a completely new way.

"I wanted to get you up here earlier but I knew nothing would comfort you as much as actually finishing the assignment." Rick said.

"That's really sweet, Rick." Kate said, smiling.

Rick carried two old lawn chairs from the corner of the roof and lay them out. Kate flicked her eyes between the chairs and Rick. She wanted to complain but decided against it and sat down. Rick reached into his bag and grabbed two beers and handed one to Kate.

"I know there's more going on with you than the assignment. I don't need to know what it is. I just wanted you to know that I'm here." Rick said, clinking his bottle with hers.

"You've been really sweet this entire time and I know I haven't been the nicest. I just want you to know, I really appreciate all of it. Thank you." Kate said.

"Always." Rick said, with a smile.

The two of them spent the entire night talking. Looking out over New York and pouring her heart to Rick, really made Kate realise how wrong she had been about him. He had taken care of her, been there for her in exactly the way she had need him to be. As much as she wanted to deny it, she couldn't anymore. Kate was starting to fall for Rick, hard.


	5. Chapter 5

Kate had been thinking about Rick. The truth was, she couldn't stop; even if she tried. She knew it was a bad idea, he was clearly head over heels in love with Kyra. She wanted him to be happy and if Kyra made him happy, so be it.

Kate was lying on her bed, thinking about all of this when her phone buzzed.

"Hey." The text from Tom read.

"Hey." Kate said.

"Are you free for coffee, today?" Tom asked.

Kate read the message and put her phone on her chest. She and Tom had dated through high school till a bit of first year college. She hadn't spoken to him properly in three years.

"I promise, it's not supposed to be a date." Tom said, sensing Kate's hesitation.

"4:30 at the café near campus?" Kate asked. She figured she had nothing to lose, she did always like hanging out with Tom.

"See you." Tom said, within a second.

Kate was a little nervous before meeting Tom. A lot had happened since they'd last spoken and she didn't really know what it would be like being alone with him again. She walked really slowly to the café, trying to buy herself as much time as possible. When she finally reached, Kate saw Tom sitting at a table, looking out the window. Seeing her walk in, Tom stood up.

"Hey." Tom said, hugging Kate.

"Hey." Kate said, hugging him back.

Both of them sat down, a combination of awkwardness and familiarity surrounding them.

Once they had both placed their orders, Kate decided to address the elephant in the room.

"I was surprised that you wanted to meet me after all of these years." Kate said.

"I know it's sudden but the truth is that after I heard about your mom, I hated not being able to be there for you. There were so many times when I thought about calling but I didn't know what to say to you. I wanted to come meet you but I didn't know where you were and none of our friends did either. Seeing you the other day, it felt like my chance." Tom said.

"That's really sweet, Tom." Kate said.

"I really care about you, I do. I keep thinking about how good we were together." Tom said.

"We were and you're great but I just restarted university and I don't know if getting into a relationship is the best idea." Kate said. She hated having to turn him down but she didn't want to lead him on.

"Friends then." Tom said.

"You really want to be there for me, don't you?" Kate asked, feeling extremely touched by how much Tom cared.

"I do." Tom said.

"Friends then." Kate said, with a smile.

Tom smiled back at Kate.

Tom and Kate caught each other up on what the past three years of their lives had been. They hated having missed so much but were happy to have each other back.

"I'm sorry, I didn't do a better job of keeping in touch. I wish I could've been there for you during so many things." Kate said.

"It's never too late." Tom said, reassuringly.

After that day, Tom and Kate had been in constant touch with each other. They would often meet for coffee, just to check in with one another. They didn't want to make the same mistakes, they had in the past.

Kate went to meet Laine, Espo and Rick. The four of them hadn't met as a group in a while. Kate was glad to have her friends back and be able to spend time with them without Kyra.

"Did you guys hear about the dance?" Laine asked.

"What dance?" Kate asked.

"it's supposed to be like a mid-semester dance or something." Laine said.

"Is it formal?" Kate asked.

"Yeah, you're supposed to bring a date and stuff." Laine said.

"When is it?" Kate asked.

"This Saturday." Laine said.

"Do you guys want to go?" Kate asked.

"Sure." Everyone said.

Kate was a little disappointed about having to bring a date. She knew she couldn't get the one person she wanted to bring. She couldn't think of anyone else, she was comfortable enough with. As she was toying with the idea of going alone, she realised who she could bring. She picked up her phone and began texting.

"Do you want to go to a dance with this Saturday? As friends." Kate texted.

She knew it was on short notice seen as how it was Monday but she figured it couldn't hurt to try.

"Sure, pick you up at 7?" Tom responded, a few minutes later.

"Yes." Kate responded.

Kate had zoned out while she figured all of this out. So, when she was done texting Tom, she could finally hear what Laine was saying.

"Kate?" Laine asked.

"Yeah." Kate said.

"You okay?" Laine asked.

"Yeah, why?" Kate asked, feeling a little confused.

"You haven't been listening to a word I've been saying, have you?" Laine asked, sounding a little annoyed.

Kate looked at Laine with an embarrassed smile.

Laine rolled her eyes and continued. "Who are you thinking of bringing to the dance?"

"Tom." Kate said, nonchalantly.

"Whose Tom?" Rick asked, suddenly taking interest in this conversation.

"Wait. Your ex – boyfriend, Tom?" Laine asked.

"Yup." Kate said.

"He was cute." Laine said, with a huge smile on her face.

Both Espo and Rick stared at Laine but for completely different reasons.

"Why are you getting your ex- boyfriend to the dance?" Rick asked, trying to seem disinterested.

"We recently reconnected and he's a great guy." Kate said.

Rick just stared at Kate, having so much to say but holding himself back.

"So, do you guys want to go together?" Espo asked.

Kate, Laine and Espo started discussing arrangements for going to the dance but Rick couldn't stop thinking about Kate and her ex-boyfriend. Rick already hated this Tom guy. He couldn't understand why Kate want to get her ex to a dance. He told himself, it was none of his business who she took to the dance, he was with Kyra. He loved Kyra but he knew he wished he was Kate was taking to the dance.


	6. Chapter 6

Kate had started looking forward to the dance. She had already gone dress shopping with Laine earlier in the week.

Kate was going to meet Tom for coffee, he had called her saying there was something he discuss with her.

"Hey, sorry I'm late." Kate said, hugging Tom and taking a seat.

"That's okay." Tom said, with a smile.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Kate asked.

"So, there's this job. It's perfect for me but it's in London." Tom said.

"It sounds really cool." Kate said, not liking where this was headed.

"It is. I applied for it a few weeks ago, not making too much of it. I just got an email saying they want to interview me. The interview is in London." Tom said.

"That's fantastic. When's the interview?" Kate asked, trying to be supportive.

"Monday but I'm going to have to fly out Saturday." Tom said, nervously.

"Oh." Kate said, feeling like someone had just punched her in the stomach.

"I won't go." Tom said, suddenly.

"You have to." Kate said.

"No, I don't. I'd honestly rather go to the dance with you. "Tom said.

"I won't let you, this is too big. I would want nothing more than to have you there with me but this is important." Kate said.

"Are you sure?" Tom asked.

"Positive." Kate said, with a small smile.

Kate felt awful. All of her excitement was now gone, she was really reconsidering going at all. She really wanted to have a fun night with Tom and all her other friends but all of that was seeming suddenly out of reach.

Kate decided to call Laine for some advice, hoping she would be able to make this situation a little better.

"Hey. What's up?" Laine said, answering the phone.

"I don't think I want to go for the dance." Kate said.

"Why?" Laine asked.

"Tom just got invited for this big job interview in London and he can't come to the dance." Kate said.

"When's the interview?" Laine asked.

"Monday but apparently, the only flight he could find a seat on is on Saturday." Kate said.

"That sucks. You still have to come." Laine said.

"Why?" Kate asked.

"Because we'll take care of you and it'll be fun. Come on." Laine said.

"I don't want to be a fifth wheel." Kate said.

"You won't be, we'll go as a group, I promise." Laine said.

"Okay, I'll think about it." Kate said.

It was the day of the dance and Kate still hadn't decided whether or not she wanted to go. She knew she wanted to go but she didn't want to feel alone and left out while everyone was coupled up. After what had been days of contemplation, Kate decided to go to the dance, she told herself it would be a fun night with her friends and plus, she had nothing better to do.

Kate got up and decided to get dressed. She had picked a short purple dress, one that twirled when she moved. She tied her hair in a bun and looked at herself in the mirror, as she put on her purple lipstick. She felt confident, somehow getting a good feeling about the dance. She looked at her phone and realised she was late to meet Laine at the dorm.

"Girl, you look amazing." Laine said, opening the door.

"So, do you." Kate said, looking at Laine's long red dress.

"Should we go meet the guys? They're in Rick's room." Laine said, locking her door.

"Sure." Kate said.

Once they were in Rick's dorm, Laine and Espo began talking. Rick was sitting on his bed, staring at his phone.

"Hey." Kate said, walking up to him.

Rick looked up at Kate and felt his heart skip a beat. She looked breath taking. He didn't know what to say, he opened his mouth trying to find the words but failed.

"What?" Kate asked, touching her hair nervously.

"You look beautiful." Rick said.

"Thanks, you don't look so bad yourself." Kate said. Rick looked very handsome in his tux, his blue eyes shining in the light.

"Thanks." Rick said, with a small smile.

"Where's Kyra?" Kate asked.

"She's in New Haven." Rick said, sadly staring at the floor.

"Why?" Kate asked.

"I met her parents a few days ago. Let's just say things didn't go well. Kyra and I have been fighting all week. Her parents have been doing this trip around the country and suggested she come along with them. She decided to go because she thought some time off would be good for us." Rick said.

"I'm sorry." Kate said, placing a hand on Rick's shoulder.

"I didn't want to go to this dance but Espo talked me into it, saying it would be better than sitting at home, waiting for her to call." Rick said.

"Well he's right." Kate said.

"Yeah, I guess. Where's.. Tom, is it?" Rick asked. He knew his name was Tom but somehow felt the need to pretend.

"He's on his way to London." Kate said.

"Why?" Rick asked.

"It's this huge job interview. He got shortlisted a few days ago and Saturday was the only flight he could get." Kate said.

"That sucks." Rick said.

"I know. I didn't want to come but Laine told me it would be fun." Kate said.

"So basically, both of our dates bailed on us and we're going to a very romantic dance being the third and fourth wheel to Espo and Laine." Rick said.

"When you say it that way, it really does sound fun." Kate said.

Rick laughed, for the first time in days.

"Maybe it will be, at least we aren't alone." Kate said.

"Kate?" Rick asked, suddenly serious.

"Yeah." Kate said, feeling a little nervous.

"Will you go to the dance with me?" Rick asked, extending his hand.

"I thought you'd never ask." Kate said, smiling from ear to ear as she took Rick's hand.

Kate almost couldn't contain her excitement. Rick was the person she had wanted to go with but she hadn't said anything because he was with Kyra. As much as she liked Tom, she wasn't in love with him. Kate had known for a while now that she loved Rick and she could help but think that maybe this was finally their chance.


End file.
